I'm thinking about getting an Outcast Pac900/Pac1000/Pac9000 pontoon boat. Anybody used them? What do you think? Any recommendations re: these or other brands. I'm 6 ft.2" tall and weigh 240 lbs. Thanks!

NrthFrk16

04-16-2001 11:13 PM

What do you plan on using the boat for? I have fished the 900 but never the 9000 or 10000.

FishHawk

04-17-2001 05:19 AM

I would not use one of these in the salt. Corrosion would be a problem. Also. the are easily
blown around in high winds. Have seen them used in fresh water rivers were its ok.
FishHawk

juro

04-17-2001 05:40 AM

I love them, almost bought the pac 1200 (two of them) with Andre from Oregon. I couldn't get the cash together ($%&#@!)

They are river rafts first and foremost, half the cost of a driftboat and can be disassembled to store in a closet or the back of a pickup truck.

I own the Buck's Bag Bronco and I love it. It has taken me down numerous raging pacific northwest rivers up to class III.

I use it occasionally in salt. The frame is aluminum, but the new ones are stainless. Given a quick rinse with a garden hose I have not suffered any problems.

It does have greater wind resistance on ponds but you can paddle at great speeds unlike the float tubers who are submerged up to their waists and must move very slowly. I recently was boogie-ing past a float tuber who said "man I wish I had one of those". I asked why? and he said - being in the water and kicking makes you need to pee, and then you are in the water and need to kick like crazy to get to shore. He did not get blown around by the wind though.

Everything has it's advantages and disadvantages ;-)

Roop

04-17-2001 06:57 AM

I'd love to own one.

For ponds I have a Creek Company kick boat which gets me up out of the water + has oars so you can fly around the pond.

I think trying a real pontoon boat in the salt would be fun... didn't I read an article last year about a guy using a drift boat in the open ocean for stripers? Think about battling the wind in one of those.

Roop

tomd

04-17-2001 07:43 AM

Juro, that reminds me of a sit-on-top kayak. Tom D

juro

04-17-2001 06:21 PM

Meaning no disrespect whatsoever it really is nothing like a yak. The yak is designed to run forward with the current thru the rapids, albeit resting and doing tricks and stuff (or so it appears to me, a non-expert). The raft on the other hand is designed to hold against the current and even paddle backwards upstream in moderate currents, thus creating a great platform for flyfishing and traveling from spot to spot at a speed that is some fraction of the current speed. You pull the oars like a driftboat, not dig like a yak. Pontoon boats are incredibly stable, we're talking stand up and fish stable. They maneuver very well due to the rocker but get blown around by wind pretty good on lakes and open water as the cost of doing business on river currents. Kayaks, with the exception of the tri-marans and tandems, are not all that stable in comparison.

For salt and stillwaters I would say the kayak is a clear winner, but for fishing in rivers the raft is almost as good as a driftboat, and better than one if you don't fish from the boat but only use it to get to the choice spots along a length of river.

.02

Juro

tomd

04-17-2001 10:25 PM

no offense taken Juro. looking at it again, I seem to have just glanced at it. you're right... nothing like a yak. Tom D